Project GREEN Summit 2023

The 2023 Project GREEN Sustainability Summit was a great event. A huge Thank You to our supporters and sponsors for making it possible!

Day 1

The theme of this year’s event was Resiliency and it was a great framework for the conference. We started the summit at Riverside Elementary School. Naomi Alhadeff from the National Wildlife Federation delivered a great keynote “Eco-Schools US: A New and Sustainable Path Forward.” She showed us a newly created online resource for teachers to incorporate and track sustainability in their classrooms. We then shifted our focus to a student session, “Environmental Engagement and Mental Health,” with a student from the Timberline High School TREE Club.  Staying in the theme of mental health, health professionals Amy Rust and Christopher Butts spoke on “Community Resiliency Model for Sustainability” a model of the resources available to teachers and students.

Just before lunch the Idaho Environmental Education Association presented their awards for environmental educators of the year. It is always a treat to acknowledge the hard work of successful educators.

In the afternoon we focused on classroom (and outside of the classroom) experiences that teachers could adopt and emulate. Students and teachers shared their experiences with and curricula for watershed education, environmental field experiences and geo-inquiry projects. To wrap up the day, Alex Brooks from the City of Boise led a brainstorming workshop session on sustainability in the classroom and how the city can support those efforts.

Day 2

The second day of the summit was hosted by the Boise WaterShed, where we got a sneak peek at the upcoming changes and renaming of the venue, and their change in their outreach focus.

Moji Sadegh from BSU shared his research in a plenary speech “An era of climate extremes: Trends, impacts and adaptation” which was full of data from Boise and very relatable for the teacher attendees.

Our breakout sessions were full of professionals sharing their expertise and knowledge:

• Curb It: Facilitating Discussions on Lifecycle and Waste with Gabe Brenner from the City of Boise
• Zero Waste as Gateway to Environmental Literacy with Jillien Eijckelhof
• Project WET – Water and Climate Education with Cindy Busche & Naomi Alhadeff
• Tearing down Red Tape – Sustainability Project Approval with Ali Ward
• Meaningful Measurement with Terrific Trees by Michelle Younguist
• Borah Garden and Green Team with Jenn Boyde

We ended the day in the Hyatt Wetlands on a field trip discussing different strategies for education and the best way to utilize the outdoor classroom for different outcomes.